CONCORD, N.C. -- Chase Elliott took at a trip down memory lane for his new in-depth documentary “CHASE,” which explores the 25-year-old's childhood beginnings in racing to winning the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series championship.
Elliott hosts Dale Earnhardt Jr. in his hometown of Dawsonville, Georgia, where Elliott resides permanently. The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE took Earnhardt to some of Dawsonville’s more iconic spots, such as the Dawsonville Pool Room, and detailed how the small Georgia town was put on the map years ago when his father, NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott, was in his prime in the Cup Series.
“Dale and I have joked a lot about him coming down. There was a lot of banter back and forth about this trip and him coming to see North Georgia,” Elliott said. “That was probably the most fun part about it, just him finally getting the chance to come and kind of see where I live and not just that, but obviously he’s known of the area for years.
“There’s a lot of racing history here, too, with other drivers from Georgia that he knows. He is a great historian of racing. It was just as fun for me to see him experience some of that and see some of Dad’s old cars and whatnot because I know he appreciates that kind of thing. I enjoyed that aspect a lot.”
Earnhardt also sat down with Elliott’s parents, Bill and Cindy Elliott, to give insight as to what Chase was like at a young age. Like Bill, Chase dreamed of becoming a Cup driver and making his own mark in the sport. While is father was instrumental in guiding him throughout the levels of his racing career, Elliott credited his mom for helping shape him into the person he is today.
“Obviously, everyone likes to talk about Dad from his racing career, but my mom has had just a large of an impact and has put in a lot of work, too,” Elliott said. “I feel like the biggest thing with her is she is always setting a good example at the end of the day for me. She always just wants to make sure your heart and head are in the right place, and that’s kind of always been the case.
“I feel like that is most moms, and my mom is no different. She just wants what is best for me and she’s just always been there and has put in a lot of work to help me get to where I am at.”
Elliott is known to be more private with his personal life but said he is learning to share bits and pieces of himself with his fans. He stated he tries to be as genuine with his fans as possible and that he appreciates when people are real with him, which is why he enjoyed taking Earnhardt around Dawsonville.
“Dale and I, I feel like, just had a really open dialogue and it was more of a conversation than it was a sit down question and answer,” Elliott said. “We were just kind of talking racing, talking about my career, talking about kind of how I have gotten to where I am at. Then obviously, he has experienced some similar things to me growing up with his dad being involved in racing. I think that part will probably be most engaging. To me that will be fun to see.”
“CHASE” will air Wednesday on NBC’s streaming platform Peacock and also will be broadcast on NBCSN this Saturday at 5 p.m. ET.